François-Xavier Bustillo, the highly publicized cardinal who invited the pope to Corsica

Sometimes presented as a potential pope, the very popular bishop of Ajaccio, Mgr François-Xavier Bustillo, stands out with his media exposure, from Instagram to the front page of Paris-Match, before the historic visit Sunday to Corsica of François, the sovereign pontiff.

“I am the bishop of all”assures AFP this 56-year-old Franco-Spaniard, son of a soldier, born on November 23, 1968 in Pamplona, ​​in the Spanish Basque Country.

Appointed bishop of Corsica in 2021, he was made cardinal by Pope Francis in September 2023.

Before that, this Franciscan with the height of a basketball player and a lilting accent studied philosophy and theology in Padua (Italy) then Toulouse (south-west), before officiating in Narbonne (south) for 24 years.

“His accession to the cardinalate was a surprise, a young bishop with two years of episcopate. It proves his closeness to the Pope”slips a bishop to AFP.

“His profile as a pastor, close to people” East “in style” of the pope, but his “image can be tarnished by a showman’s side”nuance under cover of anonymity a source within the Roman Curia, the “central government” of the Holy See.

« Bustillomania »

His multiple media appearances around the planned papal trip to Corsica and the fact of having unveiled the dedicated website even before the official confirmation from the Holy See, far from the usual protocol, annoy some in Rome.

“Many say: +he burned himself, he is too sure of himself.

In the Vatican, we don’t like this kind of attitude,” underlines another Vatican source.

Assuring that he did not sign for “enter the Titanic and sink”François-Xavier Bustillo, fan of tennis and sea swimming, believes that the Catholic Church must “make you dream, not cry”.

And since his arrival in Corsica, he has been working on it, sparking a real « Bustillomania »as demonstrated by the 800 islanders who came to support him at the Vatican for his promotion to the rank of cardinal.

Then in November 2023, he appeared on the cover of Paris-Match. The magazine, owned by ultra-conservative billionaire Vincent Bolloré, salutes its “irresistible rise within the Catholic Church”in an article written by one of the co-authors of his book, “The heart is not divided”. Prefaced by Pope Francis, the work is published by Fayard, also owned by Vincent Bolloré.

At the same time, in “What an era! »weekly talk show on France 2, Léa Salamé presents it as “maybe the next pope”. At his side on the set, ex-porn star Clara Morgane is enthusiastic about having participated in “Welcome to the monastery”reality TV filmed at the convent of Corbara (Haute-Corse) and broadcast on the channel “Bollorean” C8.

“It’s original, this modernity is pleasant”confides a Corsican elected official. In fact, the Franco-Spanish is also very political, on an island ruled by autonomists and in full negotiation with Paris.

“Corsica must regain its autonomy, its freedom and its capacity to manage its political, economic, cultural and even health life”he declared in January to the online media Corse Net Infos.

Legion of Honor

In Ajaccio, in September 2023, Emmanuel Macron meets him, outside the official program, before proposing to the Corsican Assembly “autonomy in the Republic” for the Mediterranean island of 350,000 inhabitants.

Six months later, on March 9, 2024, Mossa Palatina, a far-right nationalist party at odds with the Pope’s positions in favor of migrants, announced its creation by inviting a mass, before a first meeting. The homily is delivered by the cardinal’s right arm, at Ajaccio Cathedral.

“In this party, there are many Catholics”justifies the cardinal, while rejecting the idea of ​​a dedicated mass.

At the end of August, the one that the very chic Monte-Carlo tennis tournament presents as “a faithful one” was presented with the Legion of Honor by Mathieu Pacaud, a starred restaurateur who notably officiated in one of the restaurants of the luxurious hotel estate of Murtoli (Southern Corsica), according to their respective Instagram accounts. “We have a friendly bond”specifies the cardinal to AFP.

Among the hundred guests present at the bishopric, Catherine Vautrin, then Minister of Labor and not yet “Madame Corsica” of the resigned government, but also Paul Canarelli, multiple convicted owner of the Murtoli estate, notably for concealment as a criminal during the trial of the escape of a figure of Corsican banditry.

According to a guest, Murtoli staff served at the bishopric for the occasion, which the cardinal disputes: “Mathieu Pacaud told me: +I take care of everything+”he explains, conceding that for this reception “many people from Corsica donated cold meats and wine”.